Thanks!
to all for pointing me in the right direction.
So, a bit about the plane...
It's an earlier RV-3A model. It had an unfortunate accident early in its life when the pilot got distracted on a take-off roll and flipped it over. Since that point it has changed hands a few times with some work being done, like a new vertical, horizontal, and of course, the infamous attempt to add wing tanks. I am still undecided with what to do with these, but now that I have them home I'll call on the local guys to have a look and put in their 2 cents.
I hit the road from Toronto Canada around 9 pm on a Tuesday, and drove until the following night. Well almost, my buddy and I stopped in Memphis to pay our respects to the king, uh huh and thank you very much. The whole thing seemed rather tame by today's standards (or lack of) in Hollywood.
Unfortunately the plane has been stored in a barn right near the coast for the last 3 years or so. I have noticed some bits of corrosion here and there but nothing to panic about. I will be stripping the current paint eventually and refinishing it. It's all the little spare parts that are probably junk. a lot of unfinished parts have surface corrosion. I'll decide as I go along what's worth salvaging or just buying new.
We stuffed everything into the fuse that we could and the rest into the meager back of my 4Runner, and one of the wings to my roof. It was fine except that the trailer wasn't that great. In fact it's a miracle we made it home, but as promised by the previous owner - we did. The only incident was a blown tire and a dead spare within hours of leaving. Had to leave her on the side of the road to run over to the local walmart to pick up the last two tires that would fit. After that it was smooth sailing.
For any other canucks out there bringing home airplanes from the US have your ducks in a row. I got pulled over and told that my plane was a restricted item - they wouldn't let me in! Of course I knew better having done this before and also because I worked closely with Transport Canada a few years back when I was VP of the Rec Aircraft Assoc of Canada. God was smiling on me after such a long journey and fortunately a young customs officer walked over to see what was up with the home built and declared it a non issue. I was back in my car driving in about 5 minutes. Had he not happened along I would have had to leave the plane there and come back with DOT's permission after the weekend. Turns out his dad built a Stit's Playboy.
Now it is sitting in a hangar until I move. FOr now I will try and sort through the boxes of tools, instruments, and parts in my garage while I agonize over the wings. Wish me luck!
